Compassion and consideration in these difficult times

[breece-page-gary]

May I call on Upwork to remove the connect fees that were introduced not long ago and return to the free connects allocation per month for a few months. In these uncertain times of hardship for everyone, do your bit, I am sure you can manage for a while on your considerable 20% comission fee on each transaction, it is within your interest to support the freelance community that you rely on in these times of difficulty.

Lets work together people

[versailles]

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Katheryn K wrote:
It would help me apply for jobs. I have no connects and can't afford to
purchase any.

---

And all the jobs would have even more applicants (they are already flooded with applicants). How would that help anyone?

It costs $0.90 maximum to apply. At some point if you don't earn enough to pay for connects, you have more serious problems at hand.

[elizmklim]

I get it! When you're looking for a job the last thing you want to do is have to shell out money you're not making back right away. 

That being said, I've used the platform exclusively for the past 5 years and don't mind paying. One it's cheap and they offer different packages so that you don't have to pay a lot like their competitors. Second, have you tried freshening up your profile? Maybe you're spending credits on jobs that don't align to the skills or expereince that are displayed. Honing in on your expertise might help and if you filter out the jobs based on what you know, myabe you'll have better feedback from clients. 
It is hard to find the right one as they are flooded with tons of proposals but you can always do more to stand-out! 🙂

[colettelewis]

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Katheryn K wrote:
It would help me apply for jobs. I have no connects and can't afford to
purchase any.

---

_______________________

I know things are very difficult at the moment, but be careful not to panic bid, your profile is too upmarket for that. 80 connects will cost you $12.00, which should be enough to land you your first job here. But you are allowed up to 140 connects at one time which will cost you $21.00. So it should be affordable. 

[petra_r]

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Katheryn K wrote:
It would help me apply for jobs. I have no connects and can't afford to
purchase any.

---

The more people have more connects, the less likely any of us are to get hired.

The platform is being flooded by new freelancers trying to work online because of Covid-19. Clients are drowning in proposals and abandoning job posts.

If you want connects, buy them. Free connects are not the answer, they would just make things worse.

[claudiacezy]

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Petra R wrote:

---

---

The more people have more connects, the less likely any of us are to get hired.

The platform is being flooded by new freelancers trying to work online because of Covid-19. Clients are drowning in proposals and abandoning job posts.

---

I don't know exactly the number of proposals but I still see 50+ proposals. I suspect that the majority of proposals are submitted now by agencies. Clients are still drowning in proposals and abandoning job posts. The number of proposals may not have such an impact as it does the budget vs quality of work.

If one pays in average 30$ + countless hours to get a job here then it may be well worth to look into other options as well, not necessary to use a similar platform.

The freelancers are paying connects to protect the clients? Protect the clients even from getting proposals from freelancers that have been working on the platform for several years and maintained a good reputation?

Upwork is making now money with every job posted (with a few exceptions). Anyways, I didnt have to buy connects yet, I did when I was on Elance but things were straightforward, no lame justification, just business.

[shkrajib]

Hi, there

I was thinking if Upwork to provide Bangladeshi Freelandcer Credit Care which we can Buy connect and widthdrawal money by using that card. This card will solve most problem we had in our country.

Thank you

Sazzad

[BojanS]

Hi Sazzad Hossain,

Thanks for the suggestion. The safety and well-being of the Upwork community is our number one priority. At the moment, we aren't aware of any plans to make changes to Connects or offer free ones. We'll continue to monitor developments with COVID-19 closely and certainly notify our users if there are any changes.

[adrian_quevada]

This is an open letter to Upwork:

First, this is not a “ranting” email. I’m writing to you to bring up a concern (or you may say a suggestion) about how you can greatly help people in this time of pandemic.

Let me bring up a few contexts. Before, Upwork has this feature of rolling back Connects every month. Now, Upwork has updated it to be a purchasable item. This has greatly hurt freelancers looking for jobs especially those who are still starting in Upwork. You even raised the required connects for a job proposal (initially freelancers need 2 connects to apply, now it runs from 6-8 connects).

I still don’t get this update from you guys. First, you deduct a big percentage of commissions from freelancers, and now this. I thought you were made to help freelancers. Now, I see this as a plain exploitation of workers but this can be a different topic. I want to focus on the current situation - THE CORONA VIRUS PANDEMIC.

Many people have lost their jobs due to Covid-19. Several people are hoping they can find work ONLINE and many more people have become reliant on it. Your platform could supposedly be of big help, but how can people use it if they need to pay first before getting a chance of having a job? I repeat, paying for the “chance”. It’s not even assured that they would be accepted by employers.

I’ve read your Covid-19 Action and as much as it’s good to know about your grant, people need a more sustainable solution. And not having to pay for a chance of having a job, would greatly help them. GREATLY HELP THEM. People, especially in third-world countries, are struggling because government does not have high-end resources to address the pandemic.

I hope this letter will reach the decision-maker people and I really hope you would consider this. People should help each other. You don’t even have to exactly re-implement the roll back of connects feature. You have the platform to help people around the world. Just try to find something that would help ease in the situation without hurting your business.

Sincerely,

Upwork Freelancer

[BojanS]

Hi Adrian Steven,

Thank you for sharing your concerns. We are working hard with clients around the world to ensure that their changing business needs are translating into work opportunities for all of you—particularly in this time when the need for work done remotely is at an all-time high.  The safety and well-being of the Upwork community is our number one priority. At the moment, we aren't aware of any plans to make changes to Connects or offer free ones. We'll continue to monitor developments with COVID-19 closely and certainly notify our users if there are any changes. Stay safe!